A vacuous blood gathering tube has been frequently used as a device to gather blood easily, and when gathering blood using the vacuous blood gathering tube, it often happens that pressure inside of the blood gathering tube is less than the pressure of air even after gathering blood. When used in a blood corpuscle calculation device etc., for example, a vacuous blood gathering tube in such a condition results in the following problems.
A pipette provided in a blood corpuscle calculation device etc., is generally filled with wash water. Accordingly, when a certain amount of blood is absorbed from the vacuous blood gathering tube by the pipette, there is a problem that the wash water is absorbed into the vacuous blood gathering tube, since pressure inside of the vacuous blood gathering tube is less than pressure of air, diluting the blood. This problem is of a sufficient degree that the absorbing power of an absorbing pump is reduced remarkably, and absorbing of blood becomes inadequate.
As a means to solve these problems, the applicant previously has suggested an automatic medical sampling device which releases air inside of the vacuous blood gathering tube, using a vacuum breaking needle. This automatic sampling device is constituted as follows. Pressure inside the vacuous blood gathering tube is made equal to the pressure of air by sticking vacuum breaking needle through the stopper of the vacuous blood gathering tube, while blood is absorbed by the pipette as ever.
However, in the means to release air using the vacuum breaking needle, blood frequently clings to the side of a stopper applied on the vacuous blood gathering tube. Therefore whenever penetrating the stopper by the vacuum breaking needle, blood accumulates in the needle and blocks the inside of the vacuum breaking needle preventing pressure equalization. This problem happens as well when releasing air inside of the vacuous blood gathering tube by the pipette.
In a previous stirring device, apparatus for mixing and stirring samples by rotating a stirring bar soaked in the samples, and for mixing and stirring by rotating and shaking the container, or for mixing and stirring the sample by rotating the stirring bar in contact with the top of the container of the sample therein, are known. However, in the former type of soaking and stirring, there is a problem that since a washing mechanism for washing the stirring bar after stirring is necessary, the apparatus becomes very complicated and expensive. Furthermore, if washing the stirring bar is not complete, harmful influence by the previous sample (cross contamination) is apt to happen.
As a means to solve such a problem, the latter type of non-contact stirring has been sometimes used. With previous type of revolving and stirring apparatus requiring rotating, shaking and stirring the container, after stirring has been finished, the container has to be reset in the sampling device, etc. Accordingly, such an operation is complicated and inefficient. In the contact type of device for rotating the stirring bar, wherein there is contact with the top of the container, there is a problem as follows.
In the above type of stirring, the size (length, width) of the container used varies. Accordingly, there is a problem that the stirring bar, having a certain down stroke, is not in contact with the container. There is also a possibility that the container will be broken by excessive contact pressure. If the container is not broken, when stirring is done by positioning the stirring bar in a container holder, stirring is carried out under the condition that the inside diameter of container receiving holes of the container holder is not equal to the outside diameter of each container. Accordingly, strange sounds occur and an effective stirring is not obtained. Furthermore, recently, while rotating the container, an automatic analysis device has been used that reads, at high speeds, bar code information applied on the container scanning the bar code reading device. Accordingly, if the container is rotated with the container inclined inside the holes, the bar code information cannot be read during stirring.